Burkina Faso military government dissolves political parties

DAKAR, Jan 29 (Reuters) – Burkina Faso’s military-led government has dissolved all political parties and scrapped the legal framework governing their operations, according to a decree approved by the West African nation’s council of ministers on Thursday.

The decision by the military rulers who seized power in September 2022 is the latest move to tighten control following the suspension of political activities after the coup.

Burkina Faso’s Interior Minister Emile Zerbo said the decision was part of a broader effort to “rebuild the state” after what he said was widespread abuses and dysfunction in the country’s multiparty system.

He said a government review found that the multiplication of political parties had fuelled divisions and weakened social cohesion.

Before the coup, the country had over 100 registered political parties, with 15 represented in parliament after the 2020 general election.

The decree disbands all political parties and political formations. A law repealing the statutes and regulating party financing, and the status of the opposition leader, will be sent to the current transitional council, according to minutes of the cabinet meeting.

All the assets of the dissolved parties will be transferred to the state.

The Sahel nation, like neighbours Mali and Niger, has been struggling to contain Islamist insurgencies linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State that have killed thousands and displaced millions over the past decade.

(Reporting by Dakar Newsroom Writing by Bate Felix; editing by Diane Craft)